The use of counterfeit paper by the criminal element to obtain goods and/or services from merchants is a serious problem. If such bogus paper is accepted by the merchant as payment for goods or services, it is usually impossible to later recover the loss from the criminal. The loss occurs once the bogus paper is accepted by the cashier who is unable to visually determine the genuineness of the paper presented for payment.
As used herein, the term "paper" refers to items such as currency, checks, money orders, credit cards and the like.
To assist merchants and others to combat this problem, security features are often incorporated into paper. However, detection of such security features usually requires special lighting or magnification. Such special lighting or magnification is not generally available to the front line cashiers. In addition, different paper may have distinctly different security features. For example, the currency of the United States incorporates microprinting as a security feature which requires magnification to read while special water marks may be incorporated into checks which requires back lighting to illuminate.
To detect counterfeit paper, experts will employ a number of different methods. Ultraviolet or black lights are used to detect fluorescence or lack thereof, the use of bleached paper or erasures or deletions. Back lighting is useful to detect cuts or erasures and to illuminate translucent features and water marks. Top lighting is used for illumination for magnification. A low power (about 2.times.) magnification is useful to survey the entire paper while a higher magnification (about 8.times.) is useful to review microprinting.
However, cashiers and the like cannot be expected to run complex equipment or spend an inordinate amount of time inspecting every paper presented in payment for goods and services. Nor can the merchant expect to add expensive or bulky counterfeit detection equipment for each and every checkout station in a given store. Thus, there is a need for a small, inexpensive, easy to operate point of sale counterfeit detection apparatus for merchants.
There have been some earlier attempts to solve these problems. U.S. Pat. No. 2,059,197 which issued to Backer et al. discloses a counterfeit money detector having two lamps and two levels of magnification provided by two different lenses. Backer et al. do not disclose the use of a black light or sequencing circuitry.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,161,594 which issued to Ruth provides a counterfeit money detector made small so it can be mounted on a cash register so as to be unnoticed by a customer.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,774,046 which issued to Hoch et al. discloses a counterfeit currency detector having an ultraviolet light mounted within a box-like structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,480,785 which issued to Aufderheide provides a document validating apparatus having a plurality of light sources, each light source emitting light in a discretely different band color spectra. In one example, one light is ultraviolet, one green and one pink. The lamps are sequentially energized. Aufderheide does not show back lighting or magnification.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,296,326 which issued to Haslop et al. discloses a method of detecting sheets which do not have a genuine watermark by measurement of ultraviolet radiation.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,333 which issued to Wunderer discloses an apparatus and method for testing documents. One light guide is provided with fluorescent substance for directing at least two light fractions of different wavelengths onto a common area of a document. The light fractions are switched on and off by a time division multiplex method.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,153,335 which issued to Buchan discloses a means for increasing the visibility of low contrast images by periodically varying the brightness of lights illuminating the subject.
U. S. Pat. No. 4,146,792 which issued to Stenzel et al. provides an authenticity checking device utilizing lenses which direct light reflections onto photocells.
None of the known prior art disclose the combination which comprises the apparatus set forth herein.